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Talk:Crab Long Bao/@comment-38499943-20190218045617
1: Rebel When I was summoned into this world, I could say that the situation around me was rather messy. The woman who came to me, who was probably my Master Attendant, grabbed onto my arm in excitement. “You’re my food soul, right? Please save me!” “Ah?” “They’re going to force me to become someone’s wife! Please save me!” “Eh, okay!” “Quick! Get her! Don’t let her get away!” I turn my head to see the angry faces of a group of people coming towards us, and turned to see the face of unwillingness she had, and I decided to forget about any kind of suspicions I had and grabbed her soft hands and ran forwards. I had to spend quite some time fleeing with the girl as many people chased us with flame torches in their hands. Watching her lie on the ground almost immediately after we escaped, I gently kicked her arm with my leg. “Hey, tell me the truth. Why would a young lady like you run away from home? Is it really because they were going to force you to become someone else’s wife?” My Master Attendant sat up and smiled like as if everything was well. “Ah! I fled from my wedding! My family wanted me to marry someone I’ve never met before! Eh, I’ve never seen him before! And yet they want me to marry him.” “Oh……” “It was so unfair, wasn’t it? Therefore I ran away!” Seeing that bright smile on her face, I can’t help but smile too. I reached out to pick up the fallen leaf that landed on her head, and then helped her up from the ground. “Get up, be careful not to catch a cold!” “Mhm!” “Do you have any other plans?” “Uu……” “Why are you looking at me like that?” “I don’t know what to do either! So I’m gonna have to rely on you!” “Agh!” And hence, together with this girl who didn’t even have a piece of luggage with her when she fled from home, we went on and explored the world. She came out from the horse carriage, and sat by my side. She fumbled with the piece of green foxtail grass that I plucked for her, and watched the scenery. “Crab Long Bao, why is this world so huge?” I silently listened to her rambles. She told me, that she had never stepped a foot out of her home before. She told me, that from where she came from, girls who are unmarried are not allowed to step a foot out of the house, and are to listen to whatever they were told to do. She told me, she looked up to those other girls who were free to roam wherever they desired, even if they were living under pressure. One day, she heard the sounds of the girls from normal families outside having fun, playing jump rope, hopscotch. And suddenly, she told herself something. I want to leave this place. Then after came the meeting of us. Our meeting must be rather ridiculous, but none of us regretted it. She stood up at the edge of the horse carriage, spreading her arms out against the direction of the wind, happily enjoying the feeling of the spring winds. “Hey, do be careful! Don’t fall off!” “Haha, I won’t! I know you’ll hold onto me! Thank you, for bringing me to see the world!” Seeing the smile on her face, I can’t help but smile too. Actually, I want to tell her a thank you, too. It was you who made me realise that, as long we give our best, then we can achieve whatever we want. —''' '''2:Trust and Promise Along the way, I brought her to many places. We been to the seaside, to see the neverending line of the sea; and we also been to ancient castles which are known to have thousands of years worth of history. Some days ago, I heard of a rather famous Master Attendant who opened a restaurant in a nearby village. On the day we reached the village, we were unfortunate to have ran into some light rainy weather. The winds ran through the willows and against her face. This village was sort of like the town she came from, except the fact it wasn’t as elaborate and formal. When we entered the village, she gazed at the happy little girls on the street, and smiled too. I couldn’t help but poke her cheek. “What are you smiling about?” “I’m just feeling happy for them. They don’t have to run away from their home, from their family like I did, just to have freedom.” I held onto her hand as we walked towards the restaurant that had been talked about recently. “What would you like to eat~?" That brisk voice caught our attention. If i was not mistaken, the little fellow who appeared to be busy with tasks in the dining room should be a food soul like me too. I brought my Master Attendant to a table to sit. I was planning to ask around for what recommended dishes to order, but in a short while, plate after plate of exquisite dishes that I didn’t even order came to the table. A old man came towards us with a smile, holding onto a food soul who seemed to be struggling. “Could you befriend this little fellow from my household?” Before I could even respond, my Master Attendant agreed to his request. I looked at her with a helpless look on my face, gave a deep sigh, and withdrew a pair of chopsticks from the container. As compared to the exquisite appearance of the dish, the flavour was much more different. The flavour was way too strong; it was so strong it hurt the throat. And the other food soul, known as Long Bao, ushered the old man away. He told me that his Master Attendant had long lost majority of his sense of taste, but he pleaded for his Master Attendant’s family members to not be too harsh on him, and pretend that his food was alright. The me back then didn’t understand why he chose to do that. I know that, by him doing that, was a wrong decision. My Master Attendant stopped me from scolding him because of this matter, for this food soul before me already looked troubled enough. Once we finished our meal and took our leave, I couldn’t help but look back. My Master Attendant suddenly looked up to me, and gave a warm smile. Through that smile, I saw a little me. “Crab Long Bao, if you were Long Bao, what would you do?” “......I would tell my Master Attendant the truth, not matter how painful the truth is, my Master Attendant has the right to know. I won’t run from it, but face it with him.” “Really? Then, what if I’m the old man?” “I won’t lie to you either! I promise! I’ll never lie to you!” “Hahaha, you took this so seriously, I got it, I got it~ Let’s go now. We’ll come back to visit them again if we have the chance.” Back then, I wonder how naive I was, to say something like that. Back then, I didn’t even know how helpless one would feel in a situation like this, and how it would push one to lie to a close one. —''' '''3: Peach Blossoms After that visit to that village, we travelled to alot of places. As the snow on the roof melts, and as the trees grow new leaves, spring has arrived once again. I brought her to see the flowers that bloom through the four seasons, and brought her to try the various delicacies of different countries. Finally, after the departure of the cold winter, then I could bring her to see the peach blossom tree she always wanted to see. We have seen countless flowers, but her favourite kind are always the peach blossoms that made her feel like she was in a sea of flowers. I found a rather beautiful peach blossom forest. We watched the peach blossoms together as we drank some alcohol. But things weren’t always as wonderful as I would have imagined. When her skin went pale and she fainted, I frantically held her in my arms. I called her name, but she did not respond. I rushed her to a nearby hospital, the long-bearded doctor only shook his head at me in disappointment. “Her illness originated from her womb. The fact that she could live to this day is quite lucky. If she has any wishes, make use of this time to achieve it for her, and let her leave this world with no regrets.” “Then she…” “She probably…….won’t be able to live to next year…...and her body, due to the deterioration with time, she will eventually lose all of her five senses…...sigh, you better keep her company through this time.” Afterwards, she sank into a deep sleep. When she awoke again, it was already autumn. And the cherry blossoms in the cherry blossom forest, would’ve long have wilted. I thought for very long, whether if I should tell her what the doctor told me. But what would’ve been unexpected, that she, who probably is the one who needs the most comfort, is the one comforting me instead. “I….I knew from birth, that I won’t be able to live long like a normal human being, but I wanted to live to see the cherry blossoms like I did when I was born, so I escaped. All these things happening during this period of time when I escaped. I’m already content with what I’ve got to experience...sorry, I must have scared you.” What honest, calm words, had me unable to respond. I thought that, she would sink into a depressive state due to being unable to accept the truth. But she accepted her sad, agonising fate ever so calmly. But on a certain night, as I passed by her home, I heard a loud crying noise. I could hear her from the other side of the door, talking about how unwilling she was to accept the fact that she would eventually lose all her five senses. And I could only stand by the door and listen. —''' '''4: Wish I decided to let her tell me every one of her wishes. I don’t know if by doing so was because I wanted to feel less guilty, or it was to escape from the fact she was forcing herself to stay strong and smile through this agony. I just wanted to see her smile. And hence, I worked hard to fulfill every last one of her wishes. However, there was one wish that I was unable to fulfill. She wishes to see the peach blossom forest again, just like the time before she succumbed to her illness, with me, appreciating the flowers while drinking alcohol. But now, the cold winter is coming. And she…...wouldn’t be able to wait for the next springtime. I looked high and low for a home that was built near the peach blossom forest, the owner of the home was rather strange, he had a food soul named Wonton following him. After some discussion with the owner, he agreed to let me temporarily stay at their place. He told me it was called The Forgetful Yard. The owner was friends with a well-known doctor and had asked for their help to help diagnose my Master Attendant in hopes for a cure. However, the food soul wearing the bamboo hat shook her head apologetically at me after diagnosing my Master Attendant. Cloud Tea told me that, My Master Attendant…...was no longer able to see.. And eventually, she couldn’t smell anymore, either… And during those days where her body was still in a healthier state, I would bring her on walks through the peach blossom forest. I would never stop telling her, that I will fulfill her wish. Along the way, I also ran into a distraught Long Bao who didn’t know how to cope with the death of his Master Attendant. As the days pass, I would often go out and roam in the mornings, working hard to look for a way to make peach blossoms bloom during the winter. I was lucky that Long Bao was willing to help me take care of my Master Attendant while I roamed the lands looking for a way. This, allowed me to roam without worrying for my Master Attendant. But soon, I realise that, she did not only lose her sight, her sense of smell, but she was deaf too and could no longer hear my voice. In the end, she lost her sense of taste. “Why is the taste of this tea so bland?” This statement, was one that Long Bao had heard before through another person’s mouth. His hands trembled as he added a lot of vinegar into the tea. From far, I could smell the strong sour smell of vinegar. She had a small taste, flinched for a second, raised her head to Long Bao and smiled. “The tea tastes really nice, thank you.” Seeing the cup of sour tea in her hands, I gave a bitter smile. The food soul known as Cloud Tea, she had once told me, once all the five senses start to fail, the timer countdown to her death will start. She won’t be able to wait for me to find a way to bloom the peach blossom trees. One day, I met Cloud Tea who was standing in our yard. She handed me a bottle, which had a single pill in it. “This pill can help to recover all five senses, however, this blessing will come with trouble, so treat this with solemnity.” I finally made up my mind. After my Master Attendant had fallen asleep, I took two jugs of wine with me as I called for Long Bao, who was about to go rest. “Hey, join me for a drink.” We went to the peach blossom trees, which currently are not blooming any flowers, and we sat there. I opened my jar of wine and wolfed down a gulp of it. “I once told you, that your Master Attendant has the right to know the truth.” Long Bao, who was hugging onto his jar of wine, seemed lost by what I have just said out of the blue in a normal day, and he smiled awkwardly as he took a sip of his wine. “Yeah...you told me I would regret it, I did….but…...it was already too late…” “Yeah, I did tell you something like that back then...but ever since my Master Attendant’s health started to deteriorate, for some reason, I suddenly understand the reason behind your actions.” “....what?” I know that, the smile on my face is rather helpless. I had already gulped down half of the jar, due to how quickly I drank it some of it had spilled onto the collar of my clothes. I wiped my mouth with my sleeve. “I shouldn’t have said that to you back then.” “Why?” “Nothing much, I just know that, till today, you’re still wondering if your Master Attendant would blame you over your actions, right?” I stood up, raising my head and gazing at the moon. It was especially bright today, and it gave a reflection of its white moonlight on everything around it. “I feel that, you don’t have to worry, like how my Master Attendant knows that peach blossoms will never bloom in the autumn, I’m sure your Master Attendant never blamed you for lying to him. Did you know, that she still had a bit of her sense of taste?” “What…” “Mm, she told me that the tea you make is very, very sour, but she thinks it’s the most delicious tea she has ever drank.” “Why……” “It’s because of the heart you put into it, the reasons behind it, that can turn all the flavours of the tea, into the sweetest and most fragrant tea in the world. This kind of tea, can never be tasted wherever you go.” “But it was because of me, that my Master Attendant was treated like a joke by others, and his whole reputation went down and became just a joke!” “He won’t blame you over matters like this. However, no matter what, you will always owe him an apology.” I looked into Long Bao’s eyes. That pair of eyes appeared clear, determined, no longer lost, seemingly like he has made a decision. “You haven’t went to go clean his grave, didn’t you? Go get it done. Cloud Tea has given me a medicine that can temporarily allow my Master Attendant to recover all her five senses. In ten days, I’m going to bring her to enjoy the peach blossoms, you better be coming, my friend!” Thank you, my friend. If it wasn’t for you, I would’ve never been able to think up of this idea. Even though it may be a little too late now. But now I truly know, what you were trying so hard to protect back then. The smile of the person you cherish the most. —''' '''5: Crab Long Bao Crab Long Bao spent about ten days, gathering all his friends in The Forgetful Yard, covering every tree in the peach blossom forest with fake peach blossom flowers he bought. Cloud Tea spent a very long time, to create a pill that would be able to temporarily restore the determined girl’s eyesight. Once everything was ready, Crab Long Bao fed the pill that Cloud Tea made to his Master Attendant. When she opened her eyes again, the her who recovered her five senses, was elated and shared that Cloud Tea’s medicine worked out. Crab Long Bao supports her as they make their way to the place set up by Tortoise Jelly, on the ground was a mat that gave off a nice fragrant scent of flowers, and on the mat was jars of warm wine ready for drinking. And in came rushing Long Bao with a teapot of tea, urging Wonton to help him test the taste of the tea. Everything seemed as beautiful as a painting. The woman who was so weak that she couldn’t even sit up herself, had a smile even brighter than the peach blossoms. With her trembling hands, she poured her friends a glass of wine each. A group of people, laughing together, playing around, and even when night came, it did not stop the joy in the group. The woman got tired, and lay her head against her food soul’s shoulder. “Crab Long Bao, thank you……” Crab Long Bao who broke his promise only sat in silence. Perhaps it was because of his contract, or because he could feel it in spirit.. For some reason, he knows, his Master Attendant is about to leave the world. He held tightly onto his Master Attendant’s frail hands, his head lowered, his tears falling onto her shoulder. “I’m sorry….I’m sorry…” I’m sorry, I didn’t do as I promised…...I still lied to you in the end…… “It’s okay….I know...you did your best….don’t cry…” “I’m sorry...I’m sorry…..” “It’s really okay….next time...if you miss me...come to the cherry blossom trees for a drink…...I will become a peach blossom tree..and keep you company…..” Once again, it was the peach blossom blooming season. The flowers bloomed ever so beautifully, and under a tree sat a youngster, he gazes up as one of the peach blossom petals fall into his jar of wine. “Is it you?…….I have came to see you……” —END